Monday, October 12, 2009

The Thompson Twins were neither siblings nor even a duo; they were a trio. (This tended to cause confusion among causal music fans, many of whom assumed the two white people were twins and wondered who the black guy was.) They took their name from Thompson and Thompson, the detectives in the Tintin books.

They played fairly typical UK synth-pop, catchy dance tunes with thoughtful lyrics mostly about love. The Thompson Twins were pretty big for a few years, not just in the UK, but in the US as well. Musically, their best work came from 1982 through 1985, but they stayed popular for a few years after that before breaking up for good in 1993.

They were especially popular in dance clubs. During the mid to late '80s, you couldn't go to a club without hearing a Thompson Twins song. And they looked pretty cool -- not beautiful, but interesting -- so they got played on MTV a lot.

So here's four favorites by the Thompson Twins. "Lies" (1983)

"Hold Me Now" (1984)A very nice "I don't wanna break up" song.

"Love on Your Side" (1983)

"Lay Your Hands on Me" (1985)This one's my favorite, mainly because I really love the lyrics: "When it almost seemed too much/I see your face/And sense the grace/And feel the magic in your touch." Everybody should have someone who makes them feel that way.